Election Cake Recipe (2024)

The recipe itself calls for 2.5 Tablespoons of Brandy. I suggest killing the rest of the bottle as the results come in. In this case, straight out the bottle is acceptable.

The pre-revolutionary war version did not use a stand mixer

The article by Marian Burros uses two loaf pans.

The 1988 recipe contains pecans; this one has no nuts, unless I read it incorrectly. I'm going to make it with dried cherries, walnuts or pecans, and rum. Use less yeast for a longer rise time to develop the dough. I might melt some butter and rum and soak it a bit. Invite some friends over. Not much of a drinker but I might make an exception for this election.

I haven’t baked this cake yet, but I often substitute a half-and-half mixture of cider vinegar and apple juice for wine or spirits. If you mix the vinegar and juice before you start on the rest of the recipe, they will have blended themselves into a new liquid that will have the aroma of a fortified wine by the time you’re ready to use it.

Good choices would be blue and red fruit, e.g., dried blueberries and cranberries.

I made it last night as a distraction from the election madness. Now I'm eating my 3rd delicious piece here, still waiting for election results. It took much longer to rise, both times. I used more fruit (chopped dried apricots & dried raisins) and more brandy, maybe the rise was slower cause it was heavier from those additions. Regardless, this is a truly great cake, and, like preserving democracy, it's well worth the efforts!

A tube pan is a great alternative. If you search the internet for "10 inch bundt pan substitute", you'll find lots of charts with a variety of options.At the cottage years ago, we used a dutch oven or metal mixing bowl, with a foil covered (then lavishly buttered) toilet paper or paper towel tube or empty tomato paste can (foil covered and buttered). You can weight can w. anything heatproof. For bundt swirls you can roll up foil into rope shapes, lavishly butter, and place in bottom.

If the lemon doesn’t work for you, orange zest & juice might be a better bet. Orange goes well with those warm spices (I’d just strain the fresh juice to make it a smoother glaze).

Jess, I baked this last night and enjoyed the cake. It was moist and the 8T of butter seemed like the right amount of fat to me.

I prepared the recipe exactly as it said. Instead of dried cranberries, I had dried tart cherries. I think the consistency, spices, and flavor of this bread is wonderful.

I used less yeast (1 tablespoon) and let it rise overnight in the fridge and also soaked the raisins and cranberries overnight. Unlike in almost every other cake recipe, I did not reduce the amount of sugar and it is perfect.

Julia Felix—You could probably split the dough between two large loaf pans or two 12-opening muffin tins. I haven’t made this, so I’m not sure of the dough-to-pan relationship, but the ingredient list makes me think that either might work. And if it’s too much dough for even two loaves or 24 muffins, I think you could bake the extra dough in custard cups. If you try loaf pans, muffin tins, or custard cups, start testing before the 40 minutes specified. Small pans will bake faster.

I made with GF and oat flour, added 1/4 milk because the GF flour mix can be stiff and won't allow it to rise. I used 1 1/2 times the spices, and whiskey in the fruit, a bit more than called for. I had cherries and not cranberries, which worked. I served it to friends for an early morning gathering, and everyone liked it. The lemon and spice flavor is warming, and it's not too sweet. Also, I made it in 4 small, two cup loaf pans. This makes for small slices, the can be frozen or given to friends

I just made this cake using almond milk and Trader Joe’s vegan butter. It came out kind of crumbly and falling apart—similar to our democracy. Maybe there’s a better dairy-free option!

I just made this modified to a plant based/vegan version and it is delicious. I used oat milk and instead of eggs, and 50 grams of applesauce instead of 2 eggs. I increased the brandy a bit and alongside the raisins and cranberries I included 1/2 cup or 67 grams of sultanas. Mine might have a bit too much fruit for some…but I think it’’s very good. Instead of a Bundt pan I used two loaf pans. I would suggest being careful with the icing as too much could overpower the cake.

Just made this (used rum, apricots, cherries + some walnuts) and it's delicious! Like a Panettone that's not dry, with more spices. Reminds me a bit of the "Welsh Cakes" I had in Wales - perfect for a November Election afternoon! Speaking of the U.K., this would pair beautifully with an Earl Grey tea.

Wonderful. Read recipe carefully. I used cut up dried apricots instead of cranberries.

Recipe indicates bake on a sheet pan. Shouldn’t it be a Bundt pan?

Never drink brandy or wine or beer or whiskey straight out of the bottle. You will lose half of the experience and pleasure - that of the aroma.There are so many varieties of brandy/wine/beer/whiskey that you need to spend time to find the brand you like best, and then stick to it. Time worth spending. Not wasted.And I like to dilute Scotch Whiskey 1:1 with water. No Ice.Also you need to give wine exposure to the atmosphere for enough time to absorb some oxygen. Not too long.

Umm...can I substitute the whole milk for a non-dairy milk?

I've made this cake several times, and it's always a big hit. It's well worth the effort!! My fave dried-fruit combo is dried cherries and cut-up dried apricots, and have substituted rum for brandy- either one is good. I've also substituted coconut sugar for the regular kind, and added a dollop of maple syrup...Best grand comfort cake ever!

I soak the fruit in bourbon for 2 days, then drain, use the drained off liquid in the glaze

Re whether this is a bread vs a cake, this recipe was developed prior to the invention of baking powder. It is really more akin to a yeasted bread than cake as we know it today. Because voters (in CT and elsewhere) often had to travel by horseback days to reach polling places, housewives would wrap these cakes to put in voters’ saddlebags for food in the road. I wish this app allowed pictures of the finished product - my daughter makes this every year and has produced many handsome results!

This was a nice coffee cake, but maybe a bit dull. Next time I plan to add chocolate bits and nuts (pecans?) to snazz it up a bit.

This recipe is very good (now that the conversions have been corrected). Next time, I would reduce nutmeg a bit and i would add spices to the dough rather than to the fruit so it spreads out more. Made it in a tube pan. It did not stick. However, I think it would be better in a loaf pan as it is definitely more of a bread than a cake.

Make sure you mix your fruit in or parts of your cake will lack fruit

I made it last night as a distraction from the election madness. Now I'm eating my 3rd delicious piece here, still waiting for election results. It took much longer to rise, both times. I used more fruit (chopped dried apricots & dried raisins) and more brandy, maybe the rise was slower cause it was heavier from those additions. Regardless, this is a truly great cake, and, like preserving democracy, it's well worth the efforts!

Thank you to the folks who shared their particular modifications (I added pecans, upped the fruit & brandy soak, added a smidge of salt to the spice/flour/brown sugar mix, & needed a bit more flour to mix with the extra fruit). I’d made this two years ago, & this time it came out better! Took longer to rise, but it was a colder day. Yum. And didn’t end up needing to drink too much extra brandy!

Q: is the texture more like brioche bread or like a tea cake? Curious to know before I delve into it.